Chapter 11

The graduation ceremony of the Royal Capital International Magic School was held in a solemn atmosphere. Here and there, I could hear the occasional sound of students weeping, overcome with emotion.

To be blunt, our magic school isn’t exactly top-tier. People often confuse us with the “Royal Capital National Magic School,” which is the highest institution of magical learning. “National” and “International” are two very different things.

Apparently, some of our students try to pick up girls by saying, “I’m a student at the Royal Capital Magic School.” Technically, it’s not a lie. But compared to the National students, most of whom go on to work in high-level government sectors, we’re in a position where we have to hunt for jobs and find our own way in the world. That’s the real difference.

Of course, having a diploma from a magic school guarantees some kind of employment, and if your grades are exceptional, you can go into teaching or research.

While the principal gave a cliché speech, I—like most of the other students—was thinking about my departure into this new world. I was transitioning from a student to a member of society. I was getting a job.

Necrogrant Dark Magic Co.—that’s where I’ll be working.

For now, the President tells me I have talent, but talent doesn’t always translate to success in the real world, so I’m anxious. The President seems like a good person, but I have no idea if I’ll get along with the other employees.

I hope there aren’t any mean seniors who’ll bully me… I hope everyone is nice…

Meanwhile, my familiar, Cerulia, watched over me from the family seating area, sobbing loudly.

“Master, you look so magnificent…”

She was wearing her usual Succubus-style revealing outfit (calling it “clothes” was a bit of a stretch), so the other attendees were looking at her quite dubiously. According to Cerulia, however, this was a Succubus’s formal attire. Come to think of it, it did have a somewhat “chic” feel to it. It seems even in the world of Succubus, there is such a thing as etiquette.

After the ceremony ended, Dolk approached me.

“Take this.”

It was a deed regarding the transfer of his baronial title.

“Are you sure you want to give this up…?”

“It’s fine. I challenged you to a duel and I lost. Besides, a title like Baron is something you can earn if you contribute enough to the country. I’m going to work hard and become a man of standing…”

Even for the son of a noble, being the fifth son clearly comes with its own set of hardships.

“You make sure you become someone great, too. We’ll see who’s more successful at our class reunion.”

Since everything was settled, I gave Dolk a smile.

“Right. And I’ll make sure to get a familiar like a Succubus for myself next time!”

Well, I don’t think you can summon a Succubus through White Magic, but…

●

The day after graduation, I stopped by Necrogrant Dark Magic Co. with Cerulia. Technically, I was still a student until the end of the month, but it wasn’t illegal to start working, and since I wanted to use the company dorm, I decided to show my face.
Once again, only President Kelkel was in the office.

“I’ve officially graduated. I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes, likewise! I’m sure you have a lot of anxieties, but feel free to talk to me about anything! If things get tough, report it to me early! I actually have a qualification in counseling, you know!”

President Kelkel said this while wagging her dog tail. She looked exactly like a cute dog-eared girl.

“Dark Magic feels like the sort of thing where people wouldn’t talk about their problems, but I guess that’s not the case here.”

“A long time ago, it was much more secretive, and there were a lot of non-disclosure obligations. But when you do that, the pressure eventually crushes people. That was part of why the number of people working in the Dark Magic industry decreased…”

It makes sense. If your job involves shady or creepy things, it’ll gradually eat away at your mental health.

“I intend to get rid of those bad parts of Dark Magic! I’m aiming for a friendly Dark Magic that everyone can love! My goal is to create a workplace and a society where people can proudly say, ‘My job is in Dark Magic!’”

She wants to reform society too? This President is highly motivated!

“Now then, since you’re here, let’s talk about salary, which we didn’t quite finish last time.”

Come to think of it, I hadn’t heard the exact amount. As a reminder, the starting salary for a magic school grad is usually around twenty silver coins.

“For now, how does a monthly salary of forty silver coins sound for you, Franz-san?”

“That’s high! Is it really that much?!”

It was unnaturally high. It went past being happy and straight into being scary—like, what kind of things are they going to make me do?

“Our company has very few employees, so paying a bit more isn’t a problem. Besides, if we use people for cheap and they quit immediately, the damage to the company is much greater. People already look at us through biased lenses just because we’re in ‘Dark Magic.’”

It made sense. If you’re in an industry that can’t afford to be picky, it’s only natural to want to keep the people you have.

“Of course, I’ll pay Cerulia-chan a salary too. Since she’s a familiar, would fifteen silver coins be alright?”

“Yes, that is perfectly fine. I look forward to it,” Cerulia replied.

There are rumors that in industries with bad pay, the people are usually terrible too. So, in terms of human relations, it’s always better to choose a place with high pay. However, some high-paying jobs are expensive because they are dangerous—essentially “hazard pay.”

I hoped the Dark Magic industry wasn’t dangerous. If it turned out to be safe and secure, this would be the best working environment ever.

“As for the rest of the explanation… Oh, right. I forgot one important thing…”

President Kelkel’s face clouded over slightly. What could it be…?

“With Dark Magic, there are aspects where you have to perform certain rituals to master the craft.”

“Oh, I generally understand that.”

Compared to White Magic, there are many parts that aren’t open to the public. Since I’m a brand-new recruit, I assumed I’d have to do something like that.

“Personally, I want to get rid of those pointless ‘secret’ elements, but there are some things you just can’t remove. I’ve gotten rid of almost all the painful or scary ones, but there’s one part required for mastery that I just can’t bypass… Some people aren’t very good with this sort of thing…”

“What exactly is it…?”

If it was something I felt I couldn’t do, it would be bad…

“Do I have to sacrifice a sheep?”

“No, it’s nothing gross like that.”

“Then what in the world is it?”

“It’s… well… it’s the ‘lewd’ type,” the President answered, looking a bit awkward.
Yeah, that’s definitely a hard thing to say!